Government seeks to scrap state higher education: FUTA

• Says this is first Government to openly promote private higher education as a policy
• Supports strike action by non-academic university staff

By Skandha Gunasekara

The Federation of University Teachers’ Association (FUTA) yesterday charged that the incumbent government had a hidden agenda of advocating private education and that the higher education system of the country had collapsed. 

FUTA Media Secretary and senior lecturer at the University of Kelaniya said that FUTA was in solidarity with the striking non-academic university staff.

“There is no point in us striking as the entire university system has already collapsed. It is only a matter of time before everything comes to a complete standstill. We wholeheartedly support the trade union action taken by the non-academic staff,” he said.

He said that the current situation in the education system clearly indicated the Government’s scheme to destroy state education.

“The Government wants to end free education in the country. The non-academic staff have been on strike for over two weeks but the Government has yet to send a representative to meet and discuss their grievances. They are ignoring the issue as they have no intention of reviving state education.”

Meanwhile, FUTA President Anura Kumara said that this was the first Government to openly promote private higher education as government policy.

“The Government is offering Rs. 800,000 as student loans for pupils to study in private universities,” he said, noting that the Government was fulfilling its neo-liberal agenda by scrapping state-sponsored education,” Kumara said. 

He further noted that Sri Lanka had one of the most inefficient examination departments in the world. 

“The examination department has outdated equipment. The students who sit for the exams formulated by the Examination Department are given better equipment and resources than the department. Some equipment has not been replaced in 30 years.”